HUNTSVILLE, AL - Huntsville rocket engineers are assembling the prototype for a robotic lander that could lead to a new generation of landers for exploring the moon and asteroids.

The propulsion system for the new lander was recently delivered to NASA's Robotic Lunar Lander Development Project at Marshall Space Flight Center.

After being checked out in a series of hot-fire tests, the new propulsion system is now at Teledyne Brown's manufacturing center in Huntsville. It will be intergrated with the lander's structure and avionics to complete the prototype.

NASA hopes to test the prototype at the Army's Redstone Arsenal Test center this spring.

NASA is trying to develop a new generation of small, smart and versatile landers to fly to the moon and other space destinations.

The prototype will be able to fly up to 60 seconds and make a controlled landing.

Dynetics Corp. developed the propulsion system, which uses hydrogen peroxide, a stronger concentration of a solution used as a common household disinfectant.

"This is the second phase of a robotic lander prototype development program," said Julie Bassler, Robotic Lunar Lander Development Project Manager. "Our initial 'cold gas' prototype was built, delivered and successfully flight tested at the Marshall Center in a record nine months, providing a physical and tangible demonstration of capabilities related to the critical terminal descent and landing phases for an airless body mission."